winchcombe and sudeley neighbourhood plan | … shaping the ...… · web viewb1 business offices...

Market Town BenchmarkingMeasuring the performance of town centres

Winchcombe2013 Report

July 2013

___________________________________________________________________________

2AMT Town Benchmarking Report

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

General

The majority of Winchcombe town centre units are A1 Shops (64%).

The proportion of A1 Shops selling Comparison (77%) and Convenience Goods (23%) in Winchcombe is identical to the South West Small Towns average. Traditional retail theory suggests that the balance should be anything over two thirds Comparison Goods A1 Shops.

The majority of A1 Shops (85%) in the town centre are unique to Winchcombe, 18% higher than both the Regional and National Small Towns averages.

Replicating the National pattern, the highest proportion (44%) of Town Centre Users were in Winchcombe for ‘convenience shopping’.

Highlighting a regular customer base, 82% of those interviewed visited the town centre once a week or more and 54% of Town Centre Users travelled into Winchcombe ‘On Foot’, higher than the National Small Towns average of 36%.

Highlighting that Winchcombe is a town centre which attracts visitors 48% of the post codes gathered by businesses were from those who lived further than a 30 minute drive away.

Positive

At the time of the audit in Spring 2013, 1 out of 67 units were vacant in Winchcombe Town Centre providing a vacancy rate of 1%, 7% lower than the National Small Towns figure. To place this even further in context, in April 2013 the Local Data Company reported that the vacancy rate for Great Britain in all centres was 14%.

71% of traders reported that their business ‘turnover’ had ‘increased’ in the last 12 months, more than double both the Regional (33%) and National Small Towns (30%) figures. Whilst 57% reported that their business ‘profitability’ had ‘increased’ in the last 12 months, noticeably higher than both the Regional (29%) and National Small Towns (26%) figures.

96% of Town Centre Users rated the ‘physical appearance’ of the town centre as either ‘Good’ (65%) or ‘Very Good’ (31%), 21% higher than the National Small Towns average. Whilst in terms of ‘cleanliness’ 91% rated Winchcombe as ‘Good’ (67%) or ‘Very Good’ (24%), 10% higher than the National Small Towns average.

___________________________________________________________________________


81% of Town Centre Users rated the ‘variety of shops’ as either ‘Good’ (63%) or ‘Very Good’ (18%), noticeably higher than the Regional (53%), National (56%) and Typology 3 (65%) figures.

In regards to the ‘leisure and cultural offering’ 74% of Town Centre Users felt this was ‘Good’ (55%) or ‘Very Good’ (19%), a 19% increase on the National Small Towns figure.

‘Restaurants’ (76%) and ‘Shopping’ (74%) were classed as the most positive aspects of Winchcombe by Town Centre Users, both noticeably higher than the National averages, 39% in the case of the former and 21% for the latter.

Negative

Overall, the average footfall count over the two separate days was 80 persons per ten minutes, which is lower than the Regional, National and Typology figures.

Overall on the Busy Day, 32% of all car parking spaces in the town centre were ‘vacant’ which is lower than the National Small Towns figure of 40%. On the Quiet Day the vacancy rate increased to 40%, 1% higher than the National Small Towns figure. To place these figures in context, at a recent British Parking Association meeting it was discussed that a figure of 15% vacancy is the benchmark for a location in terms of provision and pricing.

50% of businesses reported that ‘car parking’ was a negative aspect of the town centre and 43% ‘rental values/ property costs’ both of which are in the top three National choices. ‘Competition’ was also considered a negative aspect, with 43% stating ‘from the Internet and 36% stating ‘from other places’.

‘Transport’ (62%) and ‘Car Parking’ (61%) were rated as negative aspects of the town centre by Town Centre Users. In terms of ‘Transport’ this was noticeably higher than the Regional (21%), National (25%) and Typology 3 (26%) averages. Open ended comments further augmented that ‘Car Parking’ and ‘Transport (Links)’ needed to be improved.

___________________________________________________________________________


CONTENTS PAGE

Page NumberINTRODUCTION 5METHODOLOGY 7KEY FINDINGS 8KPI: Total Number of Commercial Units 11KPI: Retail by Comparison / Convenience 13KPI: Key attractors / multiple trader representation 14KPI: Number of vacant units 14KPI: Number of markets / traders 15KPI: Zone A Retail Rents 16KPI: Footfall Counts 17KPI: Car Parking Availability and Usage 19KPI: Business Confidence Survey 22KPI: Visitor Satisfaction Survey 27KPI: Shoppers Origin Survey 36APPENDIX 37

___________________________________________________________________________


INTRODUCTION

The Approach

AMT Town Benchmarking has been developed to address the real issues of how to understand, measure, evaluate and ultimately improve town centres. The approach offers a simple way of capturing data on 12 Key Performance Indicators selected by those involved in town centre management. By having the tools to measure performance, strategic decision making is both encouraged and improved. By considering performance, forward strategies and action planning can be more focused and effective.

AMT Town Benchmarking licenses allow users to collect data on the 12 Key Performance Indicators from 1st January to 31st December in a systematic manner. All license holders are provided with a Town Benchmarking Handbook and associated data collection sheets to ensure standardization. Once the data has been collected it is sent to amt-i, the research division of national membership organization and registered charity Action for Market Towns for analysis and report production.

The System

The Benchmarking system is divided into two sections:

Large Towns; consisting of those localities with more than 250 commercial units Small Towns; consisting of those localities with less than 250 commercial units

Towns, depending on their size, contribute to either the Large or Small Town analysis. Winchcombe is classed as a Small Town.

The analysis provides data on each KPI for the Benchmarked town individually and in a Regional, National and where possible Typology context.

Regional figures are an amalgamation of the data for all the towns in a specific region.

The National figure is the average for all the towns which participated in Benchmarking during 2012.

The Typology figures refer to all towns of a similar ‘type’ as classified by Birkbeck University from across the country.

Information on towns contributing to Benchmarking in 2012, whether they are part of the Large or Small Town cohort, Region and Typology can be found within the Appendix.

___________________________________________________________________________


The Reports

The Annual AMT Town Benchmarking report provides statistical analysis of each of the KPI’s. Individual towns are encouraged to add their own commentary to the analysis, noting specific patterns or trends and using local knowledge to provide specific explanations.

The reports are used by a variety of key stakeholders such as local authorities, town and parish councils, local partnerships and universities to;

Benchmark clusters of towns to ascertain high performers / under achievers understand their locality in a Regional, National and Typology context measure town centre performance year on year identify strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities for improvement measure the impact of initiatives and developments within the town centre act as an evidence base for funding applications create an action plan for town centre improvements

___________________________________________________________________________


METHODOLOGY

Each KPI is collected in a standardized manner as highlighted in the Table below.

KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATOR DATA COLLECTION METHODOLOGYKPI 1: Total number of commercial units Visual Survey KPI 2: Retail by Comparison/Convenience Visual Survey KPI 3:Key attractors / multiple trader representation

Visual Survey

KPI 4: Number of vacant units Visual Survey KPI 5: Number of markets / traders Visual Survey KPI 6 and 7: Zone A Retail Rents and Prime Retail Property Yields

Commercial Letting Agents

KPI 8: Footfall Footfall Survey on Busy and Quiet Days KPI 9: Car Parking Availability and Usage Footfall Survey on Busy and Quiet DaysKPI 10: Business Confidence Survey Postal Survey/ Hand Delivered/ Face to

FaceKPI 11: Town Centre Users Survey Face to Face Survey/ Online KPI 12: Shoppers Origin Survey Shoppers Origin and Town Centre User

Surveys

Before any KPI data is collected the core commercial area of the town centre is defined. The town centre area thus includes the core shopping streets and car parks attached or adjacent to these streets.

___________________________________________________________________________


KEY FINDINGS

KPI: Total Number of Commercial Units

It is important to understand the scale and variety of the “commercial offer” throughout the town. A variety of shops and a wide range of services in a town are important to its ability to remain competitive and continue to attract customers. Sustaining a balance between the different aspects of buying and selling goods and services ensures that the local population (and visitors from outside) can spend time and money there, keeping the generated wealth of the town within the local economy. Importantly, it forms the employment base for a substantial proportion of the community too, helping to retain the population rather than lose it to nearby towns and cities.

The following table provides a detailed breakdown of each of the Use Classes.

Table of Use Classes

Class Type of Use Class Includes:

A1 Shops

Shops, retail warehouses, hairdressers, travel and ticket agencies, post offices (but not sorting offices), pet shops, sandwich bars, showrooms, domestic hire shops, dry cleaners, funeral directors and internet cafes

A2 Financial and professional services

Financial services such as banks and building societies, professional services (other than health and medical services) including estate and employment agencies and betting offices

A3 Restaurants and Cafés Food and drink for consumption on the premises- restaurants, snack bars and cafes

A4 Drinking establishments Public houses, wine bars or other drinking establishments (but not nightclubs)

A5 Hot food takeaways Sale of hot food for consumption off the premises

SG Sui Generis("unique" establishments)

Theatres, hostels providing no significant element of care, scrap yards. Petrol filling stations and shops selling and/ or displaying motor vehicles. Retail warehouse clubs, nightclubs, laundrettes, taxi business, amusement centres, casinos, haulage yards, transport depots, veterinary clinics, dog parlours, tanning and beauty salons and tattoo studios.

B1 BusinessOffices (other than those that fall within A2) research and development of products and processes, light industry appropriate in a residential area

B2 General Industrial Use for industrial process other than one falling within class B1 (excluding incineration purposes, chemical

___________________________________________________________________________


treatment or landfill or hazardous waste)B8 Storage and Distribution Warehouses, includes open air storage

C1 HotelsHotels, boarding and guest houses where no significant element of care is provided (excludes hostels)

C2 Residential InstitutionsResidential care homes, hospitals, nursing homes, boarding schools, residential colleges and training centres.

C2A Secure Residential Institution

Use for a provision of secure residential accommodation, including use as a prison, young offenders institution, detention centre, secure training centre, custody centre, short term holding centre, secure hospital, secure local authority accommodation or use as a military barracks.

D1 Non residential institutions

Clinics, health centres, crèches, day centres, schools, art galleries (other than for sale or hire), museums, libraries, halls, places of worship, church halls, law court. Non residential education and training centres.

D2 Assembly and leisure

Cinemas, music and concert halls, bingo and dance halls (but not nightclubs), swimming baths, skating rinks, gymnasiums or area for indoor or outdoor sports and recreations (except for motor sports, or where firearms are used).

___________________________________________________________________________


The following table provides a detailed analysis of the commercial offering in the town centre by Use Class. The figures are presented as a percentage of the 51 occupied units recorded.

Winchcombe %South West

Small Towns %National Small

Towns %Typology 3 %

A1 64 56 54 53

A2 9 14 14 10

A3 8 7 7 10

A4 5 4 4 6

A5 3 4 5 3

B1 0 3 2 2

B2 0 1 1 0

B8 0 0 0 0

C1 0 1 1 4

C2 0 0 0 0

C2A 0 0 0 0

D1 8 7 5 8

D2 0 0 0 1

SG 3 4 5 3

Not Recorded 1 0 1 1

Mirroring National, Regional and Typology patterns, the majority of Winchcombe town centre units are A1 Shops (64%). It must be noted that the proportion is higher than the Regional (56%) and National (54%) figures.

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________


KPI: Retail by Comparison / Convenience

A1 Retail units selling goods can be split into two different types Comparison and Convenience.

1. Convenience goods – low-cost, everyday items that consumers are unlikely to travel far to purchase. Defined as;

food and non-alcoholic drinks tobacco alcohol newspapers and magazines non-durable household goods.

2. Comparison goods – all other retail goods.

Books Clothing and Footwear Furniture, floor coverings and household textiles Audio-visual equipment and other durable goods Hardware and DIY supplies Chemists goods Jewellery, watches and clocks Bicycles Recreational and Miscellaneous goods Hairdressing

___________________________________________________________________________


The presence of a variety of shops in a town centre is important to its ability to remain competitive and continue to attract customers. A balance of both comparison and convenience retail units is therefore ideal in terms of encouraging visitors / potential customers.



Towns %Typology 3 %

Comparison 79 79 77 83

Convenience 21 21 23 17

The proportion of A1 Shops selling Comparison (77%) and Convenience Goods (23%) in Winchcombe is identical to the South West Small Towns average. Traditional retail theory suggests that the balance should be anything over two thirds Comparison Goods A1 Shops.

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________


KPI: Key attractors / multiple trader representation

The vitality of a town centre depends highly on the quality and variety of retailers represented. National retail businesses are considered key attractors and are particularly important in terms of attracting visitors and shoppers to a town. However, the character and profile of a town often also depends on the variety and mix of independent shops that can give a town a “unique selling point” and help distinguish it from other competing centres. A sustainable balance of key attractors and multiple names alongside local independent shops is therefore likely to have the greatest positive impact on the vitality and viability of a town.

The following shops are considered Key attractors by Experian Goad.

Department Stores ClothingBHS BurtonDebenhams Dorothy PerkinsHouse of Fraser H & MJohn Lewis New LookMarks and Spencer Primark

River IslandMixed Goods Retailers TopmanArgos TopshopBootsTK Maxx Other RetailersWH Smith Carphone WarehouseWilkinson Clarks

ClintonsSupermarkets HMVSainsbury’s O2Tesco SuperdrugWaitrose Phones 4 U

VodafoneWaterstones

Multiple traders have a countrywide presence and are well known household names. Regional shops are identified as those with stores / units in several towns throughout one geographical region only and Independent shops are identified as those that are specific to a particular town.

___________________________________________________________________________




Towns %Typology 3 %

Key Attractor 0 6 6 2

Multiple 10 20 20 7

Regional 5 8 7 4

Independent 85 67 67 87

The majority of A1 Shops (85%) in the town centre are unique to Winchcombe, 18% higher than both the Regional and National Small Towns averages.

__________________________________________________________________________

KPI: Number of vacant units

Vacant units are an important indicator of the vitality and viability of a town centre. The presence of vacant units over a period of time can identify potential weaknesses in a town centre, whether due to locational criteria, high rent levels or strong competition from other centres.



Towns %Typology 3 %

Vacant Units 1 7 8 9

At the time of the audit in Spring 2013, 1 out of 67 units were vacant in Winchcombe Town Centre providing a vacancy rate of 1%, 7% lower than the National Small Towns figure. To place this even further in context, in April 2013 the Local Data Company reported that the vacancy rate for Great Britain in all centres was 14%.

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________


KPI: Number of markets / traders

Good quality markets provide competition and choice for consumers. A busy and well-used street market can therefore be a good indicator of the vitality of a town centre. Conversely, if a market is in decline (e.g. empty pitches reducing numbers), it can be an indication of potential weaknesses in the town centre e.g. a lack of footfall customers due to an inappropriate retail mix or increased competitor activity. Street markets can also generate substantial benefits for the local economy. Markets can also provide a local mechanism for a diverse range of local enterprises to start, flourish and grow, adding to the sustainable mix of shops services on offer throughout the town.

Winchcombe

South West Small Towns

National Small Towns Typology 3

Average number of traders at a market

n/a 13 19 30

*Please note that Benchmarking only reviews week day markets.

___________________________________________________________________________


KPI: Zone Retail Rents

The values for prime retail property yield and Zone A rentals are the “industry” benchmarks for the relative appeal of a location with its users and with the owners or investors in property. All real estate has a value and this value is based on the return on investment that can be levered out of the site. As these indicators rise and fall, they provide a barometer of success or failure and, because the same property dimensions are assessed to determine them, they can be used as an indicator of improving or declining fortunes for towns. In particular retail rents can provide a useful indication of a town’s performance and highlight how attractive it is to businesses. Conversely, where rents are falling it can be an indicator of decline.

Zone A rents are expressed as £ per sq. ft. and the Prime Retail Property Yield is a Net Percentage figure.

Winchcombe South West Small Towns

National Small Towns

Typology 3

Zone A 24 29 27 25

% Net Yield n/a 8 9 8

Information was taken through a series of units in the prime pitch locations of the town centre providing an average of £24 per sq. ft, just slightly lower than the National Small Towns figure.

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________


KPI: Footfall Counts

The arrival and movement of people, whether as residents, workers, visitors or a shopper is vital to the success of the majority of businesses within the town centre. The more people that are attracted to the town, the better it trades and the more prosperous the businesses in it become, provided there is ample available disposable income in that population. Measuring passing people in a consistent manner in the same place, at the same time builds up a picture of the town, its traders and their relative success over the weeks and months.

The following table provides the average number of people per 10 minutes between 10am and 1pm from the busiest footfall location in the town, by the Tourist Information Centre.

WinchcombeSouth West Small Towns


Typology 3

Busy Day 96 170 136 149

Quiet Day 64 108 88 99

The Benchmarking System measures weekday performance. Due to there not being a regular weekday market in Winchcombe, footfall figures for the ‘Busy Day’ in the South West, National and Typology columns refer to those conducted on Market Days, thus the Non Market Day figures offer a better comparison.

On Friday 5th July, which was a very hot day, 96 persons per ten minutes were recorded, which is noticeably lower than the Regional, National and Typology figures for a ‘Busy Day’, but as noted these figures are largely recorded on a ‘Market Day’. The figure of 96 persons per ten minutes is higher than the National Small Towns average of 88 on a ‘Non Market Day/ Quiet Day’ but lower than the Regional figure of 108.

Overall, the average footfall count over the two separate days is 80 persons per ten minutes, which is lower than the Regional, National and Typology figures.

___________________________________________________________________________


The table below provides details of each count over the two days.

10th May 2013 TIC 5th July 2013 TIC

1050-1100 66 1050-1100 93

1100-1110 50 1100-1110 107

1220-1230 75 1200-1210 89

Total 191 Total 289

Average 64 Average 96

__________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________


KPI: Car Parking Availability and Usage

These days a large proportion of spending customers in a town centre come by car. In the rural setting, the car tends to be an essential tool, used by both those who come to spend and those who come to work. The provision of adequate and convenient car parking facilities is therefore a key element of town centre vitality. An acceptable number of available spaces with a regular, quick turn-over for shoppers are the ideal while adequate longer stay, less convenient spaces for local owners/ workers and visitors must be considered too.

The following tables provide a summary of the Car Parking offering broken down into the;

Provision of total number of spaces in designated car parks Provision of total number of short stay, long stay and disabled spaces in designated car

parks Percentage of vacant spaces in designated car parks on a Busy/ Market Day and Quiet/

Non Market Day. Provision of total number of on street car parking spaces Provision of total number of on street short stay, long stay and disabled spaces Percentage of vacant on street spaces on a Busy/ Market Day and Quiet/ Non Market

Day. Overall provision of car parking spaces Overall provision of total number of short stay, long stay and disabled spaces Overall percentage of vacant spaces on a Busy/ Market Day and Quiet/ Non Market Day.

___________________________________________________________________________


Winch. Winch. % South West Small

Towns %

National Small

Towns %

Typ. 3 %

Car Park:

Total Spaces: 125 55 93 90 87

Short Stay Spaces: (4 hours and under)

0 0 41 47 27

Long Stay Spaces: (Over 4 hours)

119 95 54 46 68

Disabled Spaces: 6 5 5 4 5

Not Registered 0 0 0 3 0

Vacant Spaces on a Busy/ Market Day:

69 55 42 41 33

Vacant Spaces on a Quiet/ Non Market Day:

83 66 37 41 54

On Street:

Total Spaces: 103 45 7 10 13


43 41 65 64 64


58 56 31 26 34




5 5 17 19 1


8 8 16 19 3

1

___________________________________________________________________________


Overall

Total Spaces: 228 n/a n/a n/a n/a


43 19 43 48 32


177 78 53 44 64




74 32 40 39 29


91 40 46 39 47

55% of parking provision in Winchcombe Town Centre is based in designated car parks.

Overall on the Busy Day, 32% of all car parking spaces in the town centre was ‘vacant’ which is lower than the National Small Towns figure of 40%. On the Quiet Day vacancy rate increased to 40%, 1% higher than the National Small Towns figure. To place these figures in context, at a recent British Parking Association meeting it was discussed that a figure of 15% vacancy is the benchmark for a location in terms of provision and pricing.

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________


KPI: Business Confidence Survey

The aim of the Business Confidence Survey is to establish an understanding of the economy of the town. By establishing the trading conditions of the town centre businesses efforts can be focussed on looking at issues which are of concern and how to improve them.

The following tables are based on the 17 responses from the Business Confidence Survey.

Winchcombe %


%


%Typology 3 %

What is the nature of your business?

Retail 40 62 68 66

Commercial/Professional 20 19 16 20

Public Sector 13 1 1 0

Hospitality 7 11 9 8

Other 20 7 6 6

What type of business are you? Winchcombe %


%


%

Typology 3 %

Multiple Trader 7 13 15 3

Regional 7 6 6 3

Independent 87 81 79 94

Reflecting the nature of Winchcombe Town Centre, 87% of those who completed a survey were from an ‘independent’ business.

___________________________________________________________________________


How long has your business been in the town?

Winchcombe %


%


%Typology 3 %

Less than one year 6 10 9 3

One to five years 24 21 21 19

Six to ten years 12 15 16 11

More than ten years 59 54 54 67

59% of the businesses who responded to the survey had been based in the town centre for ‘more than 10 years.’

Compared to last year has your turnover…….?,

Winchcombe %

South West Towns %


%Typology 3 %

Increased 71 33 30 37

Stayed the same 21 30 31 40

Decreased 7 37 39 23

71% of traders reported that their business ‘turnover’ had ‘increased’ in the last 12 months, more than double both the Regional (33%) and National Small Towns (30%) figures.

Compared to last year has your profitability…….?

Winchcombe %


%


%Typology 3 %

Increased 57 29 26 28

stayed the same 21 30 31 50

Decreased 21 41 43 22

57% of traders reported that their business ‘profitability’ had ‘increased’ in the last 12 months, noticeably higher than both the Regional (29%) and National Small Towns (26%) figures.

___________________________________________________________________________


Over the next 12 months do you think your turnover will…….?

Winchcombe %


%


%Typology 3 %

Increase 53 40 37 38

stay the same 33 41 41 38

Decrease 13 19 23 24

53% of businesses felt that over the next 12 months their turnover would ‘increase’, 16% higher than the National Small Towns figure.

What are the positive aspects of having a business located in

the town? (Multiselect)

Winchcombe %


%


%

Typology 3 %

Prosperity of the town 53 45 41 50

Labour pool 12 12 12 14

Environment 47 28 27 53

Geographical location 71 49 46 58

Mix of retail offer 53 38 38 36

Potential tourist customers 53 39 39 69

Potential local customers 76 79 79 81

Affordable housing 6 6 9 3

Transport links 6 27 26 14

Car parking 35 29 35 22

Rental values/property costs 18 17 16 22

Market(s) 12 16 17 n/a

Other 6 4 5 14

Mirroring National and Regional trends, the most popular choice in terms of positive aspects of operating in Winchcombe Town Centre was ‘potential local customers’ (76%). ‘Potential

___________________________________________________________________________


tourist customers’ (53%) was the second most popular response, 14% higher than the Regional and National figures, alongside ‘prosperity of town’ and ‘mix of retail offer’.

What are the negative aspects of having a business located in the town? (Multiselect)

Winchcombe %


%


%

Typology 3 %

Prosperity of the town 7 13 22 21

Labour pool 14 6 7 6

Environment 7 4 7 0

Geographical location 0 4 7 21

Mix of retail offer 14 23 23 21

Potential tourist customers 7 7 9 3

Potential local customers 7 4 4 6

Affordable housing 21 11 10 15

Transport links 29 15 19 30

Car parking 50 64 55 58

Rental values/property costs 43 32 37 43

Market(s) 7 12 14 n/a

Local business competition 0 17 21 18

Competition from other places 36 31 37 33

Competition from the Internet 43 39 39 49

Other 0 6 7 9

50% of businesses reported that ‘car parking’ was a negative aspect of the town centre and 43% ‘rental values/ property costs’ both of which are in the top three National choices. ‘Competition’ was also considered a negative aspect, with 43% stating ‘from the Internet’ and 36% stating ‘from other places’.

___________________________________________________________________________


Has your business suffered from any crime over the last 12 months?

Winchcombe %


%


%

Typology 3 %

Yes 24 27 30 6

No 76 73 70 94

What type of crime has your business suffered over the last 12 months (Multiselect)

Winchcombe %


%


%

Typology 3 %

Theft 75 79 74 100

Abuse 0 14 15 0

Criminal damage 75 28 40 50

Other 0 4 2 0

76% of businesses had not suffered from any business crime over the last 12 months.

What TWO suggestions would you make to improve the economic performance of the Town Centre?

Augmenting the responses in regards to negative aspects of the town centre, when businesses were asked to make suggestions for improvements, ‘car parking’ emerged, with comments including;

"Free car parks for 1st hour." "Reduce car parking prices to encourage more people to pop in." "Free parking."

A number of comments also centred on ‘tourism’;

"More shops for tourists and local people." "More Bed and Breakfasts. Cheaper hotel accommodation for walkers." "Destination for coach parties!!" "Better working relationships with Sudeley Castle. Specialist markets e.g. German,

French." "Better use of Tourism."

_________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________


KPI: Town Centre Users Survey

The aim of the Visitor Satisfaction Survey is to establish how your town is seen by those people who use it. By asking visitors, of all types, a more detailed picture can be obtained as what matters to regular visitors (i.e. locals who pop in every day or work in town) can be very different to someone who has never been to the place before. For the first group signage is not an issue, for example, and the second may not worry about fear of night time crime.

The following table is based on the 153 responses from the Town Centre Users Survey.

Winchcombe %


%


%

Typ. 3 %

Gender

Male 38 39 39 47

Female 62 61 61 53

AgeWinchcombe

%South West Small Towns

%


%

Typ. 3 %

16-25 5 10 9 19

26-35 9 10 10 8

36-45 12 16 15 15

46-55 19 17 20 14

56-65 24 20 20 24

Over 65 31 28 27 20

___________________________________________________________________________


What do you generally visit the Town Centre for?

Winchcombe %


%


%

Typ. 3 %

Work 11 19 16 13

Convenience Shopping 44 39 42 42

Comparison Shopping 7 5 5 4

Access Services 12 16 16 17

Leisure 14 10 11 17

Other 12 10 9 7

How often do you visit the Town Centre

Winchcombe %


%


%

Typ. 8 %

Daily 27 31 28 25

More than once a week 44 41 39 38

Weekly 11 15 15 13

Fortnightly 1 5 5 4

More than once a Month 2 3 4 5

Once a Month or Less 9 4 7 13

First Visit 7 2 2 2

Replicating the National pattern, the highest proportion (44%) of Town Centre Users were in Winchcombe for ‘convenience shopping’. Highlighting a regular customer base, 82% of those interviewed visited the town centre once a week or more.

___________________________________________________________________________


How do you normally travel into the Town Centre?

Winchcombe %


%


%

Typ. 3 %

On Foot 54 42 36 33

Bicycle 3 3 3 3

Motorbike 1 1 1 1

Car 34 48 52 56

Bus 3 5 7 5

Train 0 0 1 1

Other 6 1 1 1

On average, on your normal visit to the Town Centre how

much do you normally spend?

Winchcombe %


%


%

Typ. 3 %

Nothing 0 4 3 2

£0.01-£5.00 12 16 15 16

£5.01-£10.00 18 26 25 21

£10.01-£20.00 40 28 31 33

£20.01-£50.00 16 20 20 24

More than £50.00 14 5 5 4

Once again illustrating a local customer base 54% of Town Centre Users travelled into Winchcombe ‘On Foot’, higher than the National Small Towns average of 36%.

40% of shoppers on a normal visit to Winchcombe Town Centre spent £10.01-£20.00, 12% higher than the Regional and 9% higher than the National figures.

___________________________________________________________________________


How do you rate the physical appearance of the town

centre?

Winchcombe %


%


%

Typ. 3 %

Very Good 31 18 17 18

Good 65 56 58 60

Poor 3 21 21 19

Very Poor 1 5 4 3

How do you rate the cleanliness of the town centre?

Winchcombe %


%


%

Typ. 3 %

Very Good 24 18 17 14

Good 67 64 64 70

Poor 9 17 16 13

Very Poor 0 2 3 3

96% of Town Centre Users rated the ‘physical appearance’ of the town centre as either ‘Good’ (65%) or ‘Very Good’ (31%), 21% higher than the National Small Towns average.

In terms of ‘cleanliness’ 91% rated Winchcombe as ‘Good’ (67%) or ‘Very Good’ (24%), 10% higher than the National Small Towns average.

___________________________________________________________________________


How do you rate the variety of shops in the town centre?

Winchcombe %


%


%

Typ. 3 %

Very Good 18 7 11 10

Good 63 46 45 55

Poor 16 37 36 30

Very Poor 2 10 9 5

How do you rate the leisure and cultural offering in the

town centre?

Winchcombe %


%


%

Typ. 3 %

Very Good 19 10 8 11

Good 55 48 47 51

Poor 25 35 37 31

Very Poor 1 7 8 6

81% of Town Centre Users rated the ‘variety of shops’ as either ‘Good’ (63%) or ‘Very Good’ (18%), noticeably higher than the Regional (53%), National (56%) and Typology 3 (65%) figures.

In regards to the ‘leisure and cultural offering’ 74% felt this was ‘Good’ (55%) or ‘Very Good’ (19%), a 19% increase on the National Small Towns figure.

___________________________________________________________________________


What are the positive aspects of the Town Centre?

Winchcombe %


%


%

Typ. 3 %

Physical appearance 71 56 54 67

Shopping 74 49 53 56

Restaurants 76 41 37 51

Access to Services 71 75 75 67

Leisure Facilities 15 31 25 20

Cultural Facilities 27 28 24 33

Pubs/ Bars/ Nightclubs 42 35 33 38

Transport 12 43 40 42

Ease of walking around the town centre

62 73 75 73

Convenience e.g. near where you live

69 70 69 64

Safety 41 49 48 37

Car Parking 60 44 44 60

Markets 9 45 39 12

Other 5 4 4 6

‘Restaurants’ (76%) and ‘Shopping’ (74%) were classed as the most positive aspects of the town centre, both noticeably higher than the National averages, 39% in the case of the former and 21% for the latter. ‘Physical Appearance’ (71%) and ‘Access to Services’ (71%) were also rated as positive aspects of Winchcombe.

___________________________________________________________________________


What are the negative aspects of the Town Centre?

Winchcombe %


%


%

Typ. 3 %

Physical appearance 8 28 27 23

Shops 16 41 36 27

Restaurants 3 30 33 16

Access to Services 7 10 8 15

Leisure Facilities 30 35 39 35

Cultural Facilities 15 33 37 27

Pubs/ Bars/ Nightclubs 7 26 29 18

Transport 62 21 25 26

Ease of walking around the town centre

11 10 10 20

Convenience e.g. near where you live

7 8 9 12

Safety 16 16 16 32

Car Parking 61 41 40 29

Markets 18 21 26 65

Other 7 7 7 18

‘Transport’ (62%) and ‘Car Parking’ (61%) were rated as negative aspects of the town centre. In terms of ‘Transport’ this was noticeably higher than the Regional (21%), National (25%) and Typology 3 (26%) averages.

___________________________________________________________________________


How long do you stay in the Town Centre?

Winchcombe %


%


%

Typ. 8 %

Less than an hour 38 35 36 29

1-2 Hours 36 41 39 40

2-4 Hours 12 12 12 19

4-6 Hours 1 4 3 3

All Day 12 8 8 7

Other 1 1 1 1

74% of the Town Centre Users stayed in Winchcombe for 2 hours or less.

What TWO suggestions would you make to improve the town centre?

Substantiating the quantitative data, improvements to ‘Transport Links’ and ‘Car Parking’ were a key theme to emerge, comments included;

o "1. Restore free parking."o "Bus service to Railway Station. Free Parking for visitors"o “Better parking facilities"o " Also more convenient bus transport"o "Find additional parking areas !!"o "I appreciate this isn't quite what you're asking but the bus service is

inadequate. This also means it limits the visitors who can get to Winchcombe. There is NO service on Sundays, Bank Holidays and evenings. As Castleways receive subsidies shouldn't they then provide an appropriate service? “

o "Also parking. If we want people to access Winchcombe and keep it alive then people have to be able to drive here especially those in the surrounding villages."

o "Better bus service between Winchcombe and Cheltenham for people who live in Winchcombe and work in Cheltenham"

o "Car parking is too expensive if you just want to do a simple shop - why is the first hour not free to Winchcombe residents? Parking availability."

o "A free car park or a 20p for 20 mins - sometimes I just need to pop to the post office but car parks are not handy and street parking is so I choose to chug up the street as it's free. Broadway encourages shoppers by giving them a fabulous car park, 50 p an hour."

o "Free parking with more than 2 hours limit. Better transport links, no bus service after 6PM!"

___________________________________________________________________________


o "Re-introduce free parking for the first hour, removing this was a disaster for the town as people queue blocking the roads waiting for the limited free parking spaces. The central car park is completely empty."

Other categories to emerge were ‘Traffic Management’, ‘Pavements’, ‘Retail offer’ and finally a number of those interviewed face to face stated they were ‘Happy with the town’.

A full list of comments in colour coded themes is available in the Appendix.

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________


KPI: Shoppers Origin

The Shoppers Origin Survey tracks the general area that your town centre visitors originate from. The data can be used to target local marketing or promotional literature. It can also be used as evidence of the success of such campaigns by gauging the penetration into the population.

The 739 postcodes gathered from businesses have been split into 3 categories to be able to compare with other towns. The categories are:

Locals; those who live within a Post Code covering the town Visitors; those who live within a Post Code less than a 30 minute drive away Tourists; those who live within a Post Code further than a 30 minute drive away

Winchcombe%South West


Towns %Typology 3 %

Locals 25 64 58 42

Visitors 26 25 29 17

Tourists 48 11 13 41

Highlighting that Winchcombe is a town centre which attracts visitors 48% of the post codes gathered were form those who lived further than a 30 minute drive away. The only caveat which may be placed on this data is that the Tourist Information Centre supplied a quarter of these post codes.

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________


APPENDIX

Town Name Large or Small Region TypeLoughborough L East Midlands n/a

Hinckley L East Midlands n/aCarlton Square S East Midlands n/a

Carlton Hill S East Midlands n/aNetherfield S East Midlands n/aMapperley S East Midlands n/a

Arnold S East Midlands n/aBury St Edmunds L East of England 2

St Ives L East of England 4St. Neots S East of England 4Ramsey S East of England 4

Huntingdon S East of England 4Wetherby S North East 1

Ripon S North East 2Bentham S North East 2

Settle S North East 3Knaresborough S North East n/a

Penrith L North West 2Nantwich L North West 2Wrexham L North West n/a

Crewe L North West n/aWilmslow L North West n/a

Macclesfield L North West n/aAlsager S North West 1Disley S North West 1

Appleby S North West 2Kirkby Stephen S North West 2

Middlewich S North West 4Knutsford S North West 5Bollington S North West 5

Wigton S North West 7Congleton S North West 8Sandbach S North West 8

Holmes Chapel S North West 8Mold S North West n/a

Queensferry S North West n/aSaltney S North West n/aShotton S North West n/aBuckley S North West n/a

Connahs Quay S North West n/aFlint S North West n/a

___________________________________________________________________________


Holywell S North West n/aAlston S North West n/aBangor S North West n/a

Caernarfon S North West n/aAlderley Edge S North West n/a

Handforth S North West n/aPoynton S North West n/aAudlem S North West n/a

Broadstairs L South East n/aHertford L South East n/aHalstead S South East 2

Buckingham S South East 4Southwater S South East 4

Henley S South East 5Sheerness S South East 6

Dover S South East 6Bishops Waltham S South East 8

Waltham Cross S South East n/aCheshunt Old Pond S South East n/a

Bletchley S South East n/aBookham S South East n/a

Wolverton S South East n/aDevizes L South West 2

Trowbridge L South West 2Nailsea S South West 1Pewsey S South West 2

Melksham S South West 2Frome S South West 2

Westbury S South West 2Warminster S South West 2

Corsham S South West 2Wilton S South West 2

Chippenham S South West 4Calne S South West 4

Malmesbury S South West 4Ludgershall S South West 4

Bradford On Avon S South West 5Winchcombe S South West 8

Royal Wootton Bassett S South West 8Tidworth S South West n/a

Ross on Wye L West Midlands 2Tenbury Wells S West Midlands 2Great Malvern S West Midlands 2

Alcester S West Midlands 2Upton Upon Severn S West Midlands 3

___________________________________________________________________________


Southam S West Midlands 4Whitchurch S West Midlands 5

___________________________________________________________________________


TYPOLOGY CLASSIFICATION

Group 1 : Middle Aged, Managerial Jobs

236 places (14.7%)This group is characterized by relatively high values of young/middle agegroups (25–44), intermediate and managerial occupations, people workingin public administration, education and defence, detached housing,households with adult children and a high proportion of carers. It has lownumbers of residents with no qualifications.

Geographically the group is found on the outskirts of the big cities and townsoutside London and along the south coast from Essex and Kent and intoDevon and Cornwall.

Group 2 : Single Persons, Routine Jobs

261 places (16.3%)Places in this group are particularly characterized by persons living alone(separated/divorced and pensioners), as well as people in routine and lowersupervisory and managerial occupations and people living in rentedaccommodation. Car ownership is low whilst travel to work by publictransport is relatively high.

Geographically this group is well scattered across the rural areas of thecountry but particularly in the East of England (Norfolk and Suffolk), in theSouth West (Wiltshire, Cornwall and Devon). There are few examples of thistype of place around the main population centres.

Group 3 : Older Persons, Leisure Jobs

123 places (7.7%)This group is characterized by older persons, single pensioners, workersin hotels and restaurants, and part time workers, especially among men. ItAlso has high numbers of people working from home and of secondhomes.

This group of places is found overwhelmingly in coastal areas (for example,on the Isle of Wight and in Devon and Norfolk) and in attractive rural areas(e.g. Hampshire, Gloucestershire and North Yorkshire).

Group 4 : Young Families, Administrative Jobs

129 places (8%)The group is typified by high proportions of people in the 25 – 44 age groupsand women looking after the home. Occupations tend to be in the higher___________________________________________________________________________


managerial and professional groups and in public administration(including defence, teaching and social security).

Most places in this group are located in what geographers have called the‘Golden Belt’ a stretch of country going from north Wiltshire, throughOxfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Bedfordshire to Cambridgeshire with an‘offshoot’ in Berkshire. This area grew rapidly in the period 1981-2001 andcontinues to do so. There are few places of this type outside this area butwhere they do exist they are in the rural areas around sizeable towns.

Group 5 : Professionals, Commuting

188 places (11.7%)This group is characterized by high proportions of professional and highermanagerial workers and by people employed in intermediate managerialoccupations. There are high proportions of people in financial serviceoccupations and people who commute over 20 kilometers to work. Use ofpublic transport is also proportionately high. There comparatively highproportions of Asian/British Asian households relative to the other groups ofsettlements.

As might be expected from its social and occupational description, this groupof rural places is predominantly located within commuting belt around GreatLondon and particularly along the major rail routes into London. There are,however, examples of these types of places around other cities, especiallyLeeds/Bradford and Greater Manchester.

Group 6 : Disadvantages, Routine Employment

181 places (11.2%)This group includes high proportions of census measures that have been usedto identify social and economic disadvantages of various kinds. These include:routine and low skill occupations, lack of qualifications, unemployment,long term illness, lone parents, lack of a car and the presence of socialhousing.The geography of most of the members of this group is overwhelmingly that ofthe former coalfield areas, namely, Notts/Derby, South and West Yorkshireand Northumberland/Durham. Other, smaller, geographical clusters of placesin this group are the Cumbrian coast, Teesside and east Lancashire. Placesnot in such clusters include Hayle (Cornwall), New Addington (GreaterLondon) and Withernsea (East Riding of Yorkshire).

Group 7 : Routine Jobs, Agriculture/Manufacturing

209 places (13%)This group is similar to Group 6 in that it is characterized by routine and low___________________________________________________________________________


skill occupations and lack of qualifications. However, this is also typified byhigh percentages of people working in agricultural and manufacturingoccupations and in the wholesale trades. Unemployment (in April 2001) waslow.As might be expected this group maps onto two main types of area: ruralareas and generally those with labour intensive agricultural production ofvarious kinds (e.g. Norfolk, the Fens, mid Somerset and Lincolnshire/NorthLincolnshire) and around the major manufacturing centres of the West andEast Midlands, West Yorkshire and Humberside.

Group 8 : Age Mix, Professional Jobs

290 places (18%)This, the largest single group in the typology, is also typified by professionaland managerial workers and high levels of educational qualifications but isdistinguished from Group 1 by a broader age range (relatively high numbersof young people, but also of middle aged and older people) and from Group6 by lower levels of longer distance commuting. Also unlike either of thesegroups there are high proportions of households in detached houses andvery low levels of public transport use.

The geography of this group is similar to Group 4 in that it i33s mostlyconcentrated within the ‘Golden Belt’ of Middle England. However, it isnationally more widespread than Group 4 and includes locations on theoutskirts of all the major urban centres outside London with the notableexception of Tyneside where only Castle Morpeth and Coxhoe (bothsomewhat distant from the conurbation), are of this type.

___________________________________________________________________________


BUSINESS UNIT DATABASE

Vineyard Street THE LITTLE LETTING SHOP A2 Abbey Terrace ABBEY KITCHENS A1 COMPARISON INDEPENDENT

Vineyard StreetWINCHCOMBE CONSERVATIVE WORKING MANS CLUB A4

Abbey Terrace THE ABBEY GREEN VETENIARY SURGERY SG Abbey Terrace PLAISTERERS ARMS A4 Abbey Terrace WINCHCOMBE ANTIQUES A1 COMPARISON INDEPENDENTAbbey Terrace STONE HOUSE DENTAL PRACTICE D1 Abbey Terrace LLOYDS TSB A2 Abbey Terrace JACKMAN WOODS SOLICITORS A2 High Street WINCHCOMBE METHODIST CHURCH D1 n/a ANTIQUE SHOP NEXT TO JURIS A1 COMPARISON INDEPENDENTHigh Street JURIS A3 High Street WHITE HART A4 High Street WESLEY HOUSE A3 High Street GREET A1 COMPARISON INDEPENDENTHigh Street PRICHARD ANTIQUES A1 COMPARISON INDEPENDENTHigh Street LLOYDS PHARMACY A1 COMPARISON INDEPENDENT THE ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM A1 COMPARISON INDEPENDENTHigh Street COTSWOLDS TOURS A1 COMPARISON INDEPENDENTHigh Street HAIR A1 COMPARISON INDEPENDENTHailes Street BEREKELEY ANTIQUES A1 COMPARISON INDEPENDENTHailes Street THE LADY JANE TEA ROOM A3 Hailes Street THIS FAIR ISLE A1 COMPARISON INDEPENDENTHailes Street THE OLD TEA HOUSE A3 Hailes Street JUST-IN A1 COMPARISON INDEPENDENTHigh Street NEWSUM ANTIQUES A1 COMPARISON INDEPENDENT

High Street JOHN KEELING NEWSAGENTS A1CONVENIENCE INDEPENDENT

High Street LOVE CLEANING DRY CLEANERS A1CONVENIENCE INDEPENDENT

High Street WINDS OF CHANGE ART GALLERY A1 COMPARISON INDEPENDENTNorth Street SUE RYDER A1 COMPARISON MULTIPLENorth Street 5 NORTH STREET A3 North Street PROPERTY OF A GENTLEMAN A1 COMPARISON INDEPENDENTNorth Street WINCHCOMBE BARBER SHOP A1 COMPARISON INDEPENDENTNorth Street ALEXANDER BURN LIMITED A1 COMPARISON REGIONALNorth Street R A BENNETT AND PARTNERS A2

North StreetWINCHCOMBE CANTONES AND CHINES RESTAURANT A5

North Street EMPORIUM A1 COMPARISON INDEPENDENTNorth Street ANTON AND K A1 COMPARISON INDEPENDENTNorth Street BOOK AHEAD FOR HAIR A1 COMPARISON INDEPENDENT

___________________________________________________________________________


North Street POST OFFICE A1CONVENIENCE MULTIPLE

North Street THE LION INN A4/C1 DEBBIE DAY CARE D1

North Street THE CO OP A1CONVENIENCE MULTIPLE

North Street ADAMS PARTNERSHIP A2 North Street DAISY CHAIN BENOVULANT FUND A1 COMPARISON MULTIPLENorth Street THE SUN Bull Lane BEAUTY BEYOND SG Bull Lane RINGLETS A1 COMPARISON INDEPENDENT

North Street FOOD FANATICS A1CONVENIENCE INDEPENDENT

North Street NORTHS BAKERY A1CONVENIENCE REGIONAL

North Street THE WINCHCOMBE FISH BAR A5

North Street BROWNS BUTCHERS A1CONVENIENCE INDEPENDENT

North Street THE CAKE AND SUGAR CRAFT BOUTIQUE A1CONVENIENCE INDEPENDENT

North Street COUNTRY KEEPSAKES A1 COMPARISON INDEPENDENTNorth Street THE SHOE AND PET BOX A1 COMPARISON INDEPENDENTHigh Street WINCHCOMBE MUSEUM AND TIC D1 High Street MERCIA FINE ART A1 COMPARISON INDEPENDENTHigh Street ME ME ME A1 COMPARISON INDEPENDENTHigh Street THE COVENTRY BUILDING SOCIETY A2 High Street ACE DIY HARDWARE A1 COMPARISON INDEPENDENTHigh Street WF INTERFLORA A1 COMPARISON INDEPENDENTHigh Street COTSWOLD EYE CARE CENTRE A1 COMPARISON INDEPENDENTHigh Street WENTWOOD HOUSE DENTAL SURGERY D1 High Street SPARgO A1 COMPARISON INDEPENDENT

High Street PILCHER AND NEWMAN A1CONVENIENCE INDEPENDENT

Hailes Street HAIR STYLES UK A1 COMPARISON INDEPENDENTHigh Street THE CATS WHISKERS A1 COMPARISON INDEPENDENT

___________________________________________________________________________


CAR PARKING DATABASE

Name: Back Lane Bull LaneOn Street/ Car Park: Car Park Car ParkTotal Spaces: 84 41Short Stay Spaces: (4 hours and under)

0 0


79 40

Disabled Spaces: 5 1Charge: HOW MUCH

DOES IT COST TO PARK FOR AN

HOUR? £1

HOW MUCH DOES IT COST TO PARK FOR AN HOUR? £1

HOW MUCH DOES IT COST

TO PARK FOR 4 HOURS? £1

HOW MUCH DOES IT COST

TO PARK FOR 4 HOURS? £5

HOW MUCH DOES IT COST TO PARK FOR MORE THAN 4

HOURS? £1

HOW MUCH DOES IT COST TO PARK FOR MORE THAN 4

HOURS? £8Vacant Spaces on 2nd April: 43 26Vacant Spaces on 10th May: 60 23Illegal Spaces on 2nd April: 0 0Illegal Spaces on a 10 May: 0 0

___________________________________________________________________________


Name: Main Street by Wall

North Street

Outside Plaisterers

Arms

Outside Conservative

Club

Vineyard Street

On Street/ Car Park: On Street On Street On Street On Street On StreetTotal Spaces: 12 9 36 7 39


0 9 34 00


12 0 0 739

Disabled Spaces: 0 0 2 0 0Vacant Spaces on 2nd

April:0 0 4 1 0

Vacant Spaces on 10th May:

1 0 3 0 4

Illegal Spaces on 2nd April:

2 0 0 0 0

Illegal Spaces on a 10th May:

0 0 0 0 0

___________________________________________________________________________


BUSINESS CONFIDENCE SURVEYS

"Face lift!! More shops for tourists and local people." "Free car parks for 1st hour." "Free car parking. One way system around Abbey Terrace." "Business courses/ advice to local traders on how to maximize their potential." "More Bed and Breakfasts. Cheaper hotel accommodation for walkers." "Tidier streets." "Less half day closings! Destination for coach parties!! Lloyds TSB cash point either

out of cash or out of order at weekends." "Better working relationships with Sudeley Castle. Specialist markets e.g. German,

French." "Better use of Tourism. Better use of trading hours." "Reduce car parking prices to encourage more people to pop in." "High Street and North Street re tarmacced to slow down traffic. Reduction in

business rates." "Speed cameras. Divert traffic." "Paved pavements. Free car parking." "Free parking. Better bus service/ evenings/ Sundays."

___________________________________________________________________________


TOWN CENTRE USERS SURVEYKey

Car ParkingTraffic ManagementTransport LinksPavementsRetail offerHappy with town

o "1. Restore free parking 2. Encourage local shop keepers"o "Bus service to Railway Station. Free Parking for visitors"o "Free parking in car park and reduce on street parking in North Street.

Winchcombe by-pass road especially if the amount of planned new house building in the town is to take place. In- town and through town traffic cannot be accommodated."

o "less gift shops. Better parking facilities"o "1: Our biggest asset is the square, remove general parking from it (Lloyds

Bank) and return it to waterfounting/grass,seating etc. There is not a town square in the whole of europe that would use its main asset in such a bad way! 2: Pedestrian the whole of North St and have a walk through one of the properties direct fron back lane car park."

o "1) Greater variety of shops. 2) A one way system to stop the road congestion in the town."

o "Greater variety of food/greengrocers and a choice of supermarket type shops. Also more convenient bus transport"

o "Hold a more regular farmers market with more stalls. There are so many local producers around Winchcombe there must be more that can come! Involve more businesses (not just those who are WBF members) in discussions about the town centre."

o "Better facilities such as toilets and seating, and more rubbish bins. Better signage to town from/to the car parks."

o "SPEED CAMERAS! MORE PARKING"o "Take a radical look at the traffic situation. Consider a one-way system which

would allow traffic calming, pavement widening. Limiting HGV vehicles, with access to shops only, maybe limiting delivery times. Allowing creation of a more pedestrian friendly zone in North Street, maybe loosing pavement edges .... making a more 'café-style'look to the centre. Also take back control of Abbey Terrace car park creating a more attractive environment ... possible with less parking spaces. Find additional parking areas !!! Remember most of these schemes will have objectors ... but it should be for the greater good and it's surprising how quickly people get used to change even if they didn't want it."

o "Re do the pavements which are in a state and stop the huge lorries coming through the town."

___________________________________________________________________________


o "A modern community centre with space for an audience of 250+ Improved lighting at Winchcombe cross"

o "Reduce the size of local coaches. Resurface major roads"o "FREE PARKING. BETTER TOILETS & CAR PARKING SIGNAGE"o "Bus stops should be more clearly marked. Short stay car park could be a bit

cheaper."o "The service care aspect, resident to visitor. Improve product knowledge,

"We love our town, you are welcome". A true centre for visitors to make them feel there is a heart to the town. (Mini Covent Garden style) with better car parking closer to centre and free up more for pedestrians, plus improved retail shopping experience (e.g. Chipping Campden)"

o "Free loos"o "I appreciate this isn't quite what you're asking but the bus service is

inadequate. This also means it limits the visitors who can get to Winchcombe. There is NO service on Sundays, Bank Holidays and evenings. As Castleways receive subsidies shouldn't they then provide an appropriate service? With more new houses being built it won't matter what the town centre offers or looks like if people can't get there due to gridlock of cars - they will go elsewhere. Also parking. If we want people to access Winchcombe and keep it alive then people have to be able to drive here especially those in the surrounding villages."

o "Improve the pavements and stop the HGV's that come through and go up on the pavements when you are on them as a pedestrian! Better use of Abbey Terrace rather than just parking 100%"

o "Free parking to get cars off the streets"o "Restrict heavy lorries. Maximum20mile limit"o "Better traffic management. A farmers market on the Abbey Terrace."o "Improve parking and traffic management. Encourage new shops by reducing

rates"o "Much more signage for things like the £1 a day car parking. A unified range

of ""medieval"" signage on approaches to town and throughout guiding people through the various tourist attractions on offer. Slow through traffic down and stop large lorries going through. Beef up the museum/tourist information/town hall as the focal point of town."

o "A CAR PARK OFF THE MAIN CHELT ROAD TO ENCOURAGE MORE VISITORS TO STOP AND SHOP Etc. MORE PROFESSIONAL SIGNAGE AT EACH END OF TOWN WITH UPCOMING EVENTS TO STOP THE MESSY FREE FOR ALL THAT GIVES A BAD IMPRESSION TO VISITORS"

o "Regular street cleansing. Introduce Parking restrictions in Gloucester Street to limit parking on both sides. Use double yellow lines, waiting time limits and residents' permits. [This will help flow of traffic, ease congestion and reduce the numerous cases of vehicle damage to parked cars, and also remove the need to park on pavements]"

o "Retailers do more to make shopping an experience. Better cleaning of pavements, smarten appearance with flowers and open longer hours."

___________________________________________________________________________


o "Abbey Terrace would make an ideal site for a market to be held. A ONE WAY SYSTEM FOR TRAFFIC, LESS ON STREET PARKING, AND WIDENING OF FOOTPATHS"

o "A greengrocer shop. Better bus service between Winchcombe and Cheltenham for people who live in Winchcombe and work in Cheltenham"

o "Better appearance of coop, a good shop, but windows should be plainer to match in with a period street. More lighting for the winter, it needs to be cheerier, in appearance, somehow. The post office windows need to be much better displayed. We need to appeal, to encourage visitors, and not look half closed. N.B. I love Winchcombe and all the residents, I just feel it doesn't seem to sell itself, somehow. We are very lucky to have supermarket Bank butchers bakers deli teashops, and quality restuarants, dentists opticians fire station Doctors etc, but I still feel a Police station for a few hours a day is vital, to keep the residents confident of quick response in need."

o "Monthly market on dual use Abbey Terrace Toilets"o "Free car parking. Pedestrianise North Street, and encourage a cafe society."o "Car parking is too expensive if you just want to do a simple shop - why is the

first hour not free to Winchcombe residents? Parking availability - single yellow line on one side, near the shops, with 3 portions of dropped kerb - money making for council when giving parking tickets?"

o "1. Improve quality/finish of pavements 2. Pedestrian access from Cowl Lane to North Street (for Library car park users)"

o "Encourage shopkeepers to sweep their frontage every morning. Encourage more shop keepers to open on Sundays in Spring and Summer when there are tourists about."

o "Traffic restriction . An alternative to the co-op"o "Repair pavements eg North Street. Metal drain covers rusting away. Public

road crossings at stragic locations."o "A free car park or a 20p for 20 mins - som times I just need to pop to the

post office but car parks are not handy and street parking is so I choose to chug up the street as it's free. Broadway encourages shoppers by giving them a fabulous car park, 50 p an hour and a super duper clean looked after ( employing a person ) public toilet. Why can't Winch do that too."

o "Take stringent action over dog fouling, this is often commented upon by our visitors. Prevent bikes being left outside shops blocking the pavement."

o "Extend facilities for young people (secondary school age) Clear drains more regularly"

o "Easier car parking and FOC encourage more shops"o "Better use of abbey terrace ie village green; market etc making it a focal

point in the town. Measures to allow better flow of traffic through the town and reduce number of heavy goods vehicles driving through & congesting the narrow streets."

o "Free parking with more than 2 hours limit. Better transport links, no bus service after 6PM!"

o "Less restrictions on parking in north street"

___________________________________________________________________________


o "Free parking"o "Encourage more "normal" shops to open up. Improve traffic flow through

town centre"o "Stop cars speeding by paving the streets and giving pedestrians a right of

way. There could be more diversity in the variety of shops, too many hairdressers and antique shops, a green grocers would be good! But I would hate to see the town centre ruined by the addition of a supermarket."

o "Remove pavements and give pedestrians right of way, or at least turn the cross into a market square. Improve diversity of shops, ie less hairdresser and antiques and more food shop (green grocer not supermarkets)"

o "Speed restrictions on North Street to 20 miles per hour. Dog mess fouling fines enforced."

o "1. Maybe not exactly in the centre, but an enhanced sports hall and ideally a swimming pool would be great. 2. Speed restrictions of 20mph in the centre, particularly on the approaches and Hailes St., and a 7 tonne limit on lorries coming through - perhaps taking us off the sat nav route for HGVs."

o "1) Free parking for up to 1 hour 2) Safe crossing along the High St"o "Ban excessively large lorries from going through the town centre. It would

be an asset to such a historic town if pedestrianisation were possible in the town centre: I appreciate it is not--so Winchcombe's old main streets will always have traffic problems and make ambling around the town less attractive Pavements are narrow and vehicles are getting larger--not a good combination for pedestrians."

o "Resurfacing of roads to improve appearance and road safety. Creation of public open space, green space etc."

o "Free Car Parking. A good veg. shop"o "Better variety of shops. Leisure activities for small children"o "Free parking for residents. A decent walking shop (e.g a bit like Blacks) to go

with the 'walking image' that Winchcombe is promoting."o "Speed should be restricted to 20mph in High Street and North Street. One

way system for traffic in Castle Street where it joins High Street."o "More places to chain/leave bikes safely. More transport links."o "Lovely how it is."o "Some pavements are slightly too narrow, makes it hard to push a pushchair

along them."o "More young people shops - clothing. More buses at the weekend/evening."o "Roads swept. Fines for dog mess."o "Wider pavements."o "Central meeting place (get rid of railing outside Town Hall) add benches &

knock down Town Hall. Attitudes (negative people) more welcoming to new comers."

o "Greater variety of shops (clothes)."o "Happy how it is."o "More plants and flowers."o "Reduce the number of lorries/large vehicles coming through."

___________________________________________________________________________


o "Happy how it is."o "Better bus links - later & weekends. Improve levels of gum & dog poo on the

streets."o "Swing parks. Too many families for size of parks. Tennis courts/football

pitch."o "Make it one way again. Clinic - Hospital shut."o "It's nice how it is."o "Happy how it is."o "Create new toilet facilities near Abbey terrace."o "Better parking for locals."o "More public transport. Ban large lorries from smaller roads."o "Happy how it is."o "Improve the transport links."o "More buses, especially at the weekend/evenings. More variety of shops."o "Happy how it is."o "Generally happy how it is though can get too busy during the Summer with

tourists."o "Encourage a fish monger to come into the area. Start a regular market."o "Lovely how it is, though there do seem to be a lot more larger lorries going

through today which is a shame."o "Lovely how it is."o "Generally happy but it would be nice to have some more buses."o "Few more shops - fish mongers, show shop. A swimming pool."o "Happy how it is and want to come back and visit in the future."o "More sign posts."o "Lovely how it is."o "Some pavements could do with being widened, especially during summer."o "Cycle lanes."o "Cheaper parking or better buses."o "More variety of shops - fish monger & shoe shop. Better advertisement of

local events."o "Nothing, happy how it is."o "Would like to get a train from London, but difficult to find buses from nearby

stations."o "Make parking free."o "Better transport links. More flowers/plants."o "Nothing, happy how it is."o "More flowers."o "More greenery."o "Happy how it is though would be better with less cars."o "More variety of shops. Cheaper parking."o "Happy how it is."o "Train station."o "More parking. Public toilets."

___________________________________________________________________________


o "Happy how it is."o "Cheaper/free parking or better transport links."o "More signs about the history of the area."o "More parking. Less tourists."o "More variety of shops. More green plants on the streets."o "Happy how it is."o "More variety of shops."o "Happy how it is."o "More gardens. Better pathways."o "Cycle parking. Bike lanes."o "Make the bus connection to the station better."o "Better parking. Waitrose."o "More frequent buses."o "Free/Easier parking. Better range of shops."o "Abbey Terrace car park converted to a town green/garden. Free car

parking."o "* More facilities are needed due to the increase of the population."o "limit HGV traffic through centre...make trucks to paper mill go via Cleeve or

Cheltenham. Install traffic calming measures and/or speed camera at approach to Winch from Broadway - the 30mph is rarely adhered to espec.leading up to Chandos St. and into Hailes St."

o "free parking in the car parks, to allow better road access through the town do not allow street parking."

o "1) I would like to see a nice place for children to play and spend time - either indoor or outdoor. I hear there is a playground, but I have never been there because I don't know where it is and other parents tell me it is a bit run down and full of older kids after school and on holidays. 2) I would like to see a family friendly restaurant or cafe. Food Fanatics is fine, but you always get the feeling they are quite looking forward to your departure."

o "Free parking at Back Lane. No more antique/ junk shops/charity shops.o More variety of shops. I miss the bookshop!!"o "A one way system to manage the traffic. Free parking behind the library."o "1. Discourage through traffic or AT LEAST implement stringent speed

controls 2. Provide a VARIETY of 'real' shops, for use by local population (not more 'antique-y type shops)."

o "A area where events could be held in inclement weather - the Abbeyfields centre is very uninspiring. A greengrocers."

o "Could do with another small super market"o "Re-introduce free parking for the first hour, removing this was a disaster for

the town as people queue blocking the roads waiting for the limited free parking spaces. The central car park is completely empty. Introduce 20mph speed limit in the centre of the town where it is very dangerous for pedestrians shopping"

o "Difficult as the old buildings and roads are restricting"

___________________________________________________________________________


o "A decent vegetable shop. Some competition to the Co-op"o "Better bus links and close the top end of North Street to create a pedestrian

area. This would enable better interaction between shops and customers."o "Alter the town hall covered area by glazing between the stone pillars and

make it into a much more attractive information centre"o "Free short term car parking in Back Lane ie first half hour to enable people

to do a larger local shop. More cleaning of streets especially Abbey Terrace, possibly some more waste bins in North Street for those who eat takeaways."

o "Less traffic better (free) parking in car parks with better signs to them."o "Make sure Abbey Terrace and outside St. Peters is always free from leaves.

The overhanging trees on the terrace, whilst looking nice, are constantly shedding leaves. Keep the gutters free from weeds. Competition for the Co-op. Their prices too high. Deli Ok for luxuries."

o "Improve the bus service to Cheltenham. Encourage a greengrocery."o "Some competition for the Co-operative Store which is so cramped. A

pedestrian crossing by the chemist."o "MAKE BULL LANE CAR PARK FIRST HOUR FREE PARKING. TRAFFIC WARDENS

ARE SCARING PEOPLE AWAY! ONE CUSTOMER STAYING AT A LOCAL HOTEL SAID WARDEN WAS STOOD OUTSIDE HOTEL AT 8.30 am"

o "Increased variety of shops. Lower the ridiculous walkers' finger signs at the top of Vineyard Street so that people can notice and read them!"

o "Free half hour parking in town car parks for residents. No more charity shops."

___________________________________________________________________________


winchcombe and sudeley neighbourhood plan | … shaping the ...… · web viewb1 business offices...

Documents